If you don't want to read the entire post, here's the summary:
1. I think the only semi-permanent solution is to downgrade from 295.20 to nvidia driver version 290.10
2. you can run evolution withstrace -o evolution.log evolution
and IT WILL NOT CRASH
3. It doesn't matter whether you use the nvidia binary straight from nvidia, using sgfxi, or use the nvidia-kernel-dkms/glx debian way. Evolution still dies.

PS strace is normally used to track system calls for the purpose trouble shooting. That it prevents evolution from crashing is completely unintended. But it works as a quick-fix.

"The nvidia-tls libraries (/usr/lib/libnvidia-tls.so.x.y.z and /usr/lib/tls/libnvidia-tls.so.x.y.z); these files provide thread local storage support for the NVIDIA OpenGL libraries (libGL, libGLcore, and libglx). Each nvidia-tls library provides support for a particular thread local storage model (such as ELF TLS), and the one appropriate for your system will be loaded at run time."

The symptoms:
Start evolution, and it will crash with a segmentation fault within the first ten seconds or so

If you don't want to downgrade the nvidia drivers:
A temporary solution is, odd as it may seem, to usestrace -o evolution.log evolution
because it just refuses to crash. I don't know why, but it works.

21 December 2011

Galley proofs of scientific articles are typically provided in the form of pdf files with ambiguous passages and editorial suggestions marked. You are then expected to add comments to the pdf indicating whether you agree to changes and/or clarifications. Well, good luck doing that.

It does appear that Acrobat Reader (9.4.x under linux, 10.1.1 under windows) does not support annotation/commenting anymore. See picture for security settings:

I fooled around with pdf2ps + ps2pdf, pdftk allow AllFeatures etc. No luck. Still no annotation in acroread.

PDFedit didn't help much. It looks like an advanced piece of software, but it offers no obvious way of making post-it type comments. The best approximation is adding text to the margins, but it's not what I set out to do.

It really is a straightforward piece of software, and does the trick, so no complaints there. However, it is very unfortunate that such a central piece of functionality is unavailable under linux.

Also, it does seem that acrobat reader is intentionally crippled -- from what I understand there is no obvious reason why commenting isn't allowed (i.e. not the fault of the authors of the pdf) other than because Adobe wants you to shill out money for their 'Pro' version (...interesting how FOSS normally doesn't market itself by adding X or Pro to the name...)